December 2, 1971: The United Arab Emirates Is Formed

December 2, 1971: The United Arab Emirates are granted independence from Britain. The UAE is one of the richest countries on Earth. But is also one of the worst.

In the 19th Century, with pearling becoming a major economic activity, piracy became rampant in the Persian Gulf. Local sheikhdoms formed a pact with the United Kingdom to create the Trucial States, a British protectorate. Effectively, they chose to become a satellite state of Britain rather than a satellite state of their neighbors, Saudi Arabia and Oman. The Trucial States remained under British influence until full independence as the United Arab Emirates in 1971.

They are an absolute monarchy/dictatorship of 10 million people. They are governed by a Federal Supreme Council, made up of the ruling Sheikhs of Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Ajman, Fujairah, Sharjah, Ras Al Khaimah, and Umm Al Quwain. The FSC is led by a President. As of May 14, 2022, that President is Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the ruler of Abu Dhabi. The Emirate of Abu Dhabi has about 3 million, and the Emirate of Dubai has about 4 million.

The City of Dubai serves as an international hub of finance, tourism, and commerce. Only 11 percent of the population are native Emiratis. The vast majority of inhabitants are expatriates and migrant workers, most of whom are from South Asia. Dubai is home to the world's tallest building, the Burj Khalifa; and what may be the world's largest shopping mall, the Dubai Mall. (The Iran Mall in Tehran disputes this.)

As with the former World Trade Center in New York, and the CN Tower in Toronto, the Burj Khalifa messes with the perspective of the skyline, making very tall buildings look considerably shorter. 

The UAE has the most diversified economy among the members of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), having become less reliant on natural resources in the 21st Century, and increasingly focusing on tourism and business. But the companies running those tall buildings are finding it difficult to rent. And many of those expatriates live in what are essentially suburbs of the city.

One American urbanist has called Dubai a parody of the worst aspects of American cities and their suburbs. He also essentially called Dubai what a newspaper reporter around 2000 called the Houston Astrodome and the remaining buildings of the 1964-65 New York World's Fair: Relics of a future that never happened.

The UAE is a member of the United Nations, the Arab League, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the World Trade Organization (WTO), and BRICS (named for its 5 original member nations: Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa; and also including Egypt, Ethiopia, Indonesia and Iran).

The country treats those migrant workers very badly, and pays them badly. It has been suggested that some are not paid at all: Slave labor. Human rights organizations have suggested that the government is guilty of forced disappearances and torture. The country does not have freedom of speech, freedom of the press, or freedom of assembly; and the only concessions this Muslim nation makes to freedom of religion are due to the need for the revenue provided by the expatriates.

It infuriates me to no end that the Emirates airline’s name is on Arsenal F.C.'s stadium and shirts. The son of the Emir of Dubai owns another English Premier League team, Manchester City, and named it after his Emirate's airline, Etihad -- which, ironically, given the name of the bigger team in Manchester, is translated as "United."

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December 2, 1971 was a Thursday. This was also the day the New York Yankees made one of the worst trades in their history, sending Stan Bahnsen to the Chicago White Sox for Rich McKinney. I have a separate entry for that event.

Baseball was out of season. Football was in midweek. There were no games played in the American Basketball Association. There was 1 game played in the NBA: The Buffalo Braves beat the Baltimore Bullets, 109-105, a "home game" for the Braves at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

There were 2 games played in the NHL. The Philadelphia Flyers and the Detroit Red Wings played to a tie, 1-1 at The Spectrum in Philadelphia. And the Buffalo Sabres beat the Los Angeles Kings, 2-0 at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium. Which doesn't explain why it was the Braves who had to move, since they and the Sabres both began play in the Autumn of 1970. Although the Braves could play "home games" at the home of the Toronto Maple Leafs, while the Sabres couldn't, seeing the Leafs as a geographical rival.